Manta
The MantaScott Zenteno's ArtStation is a military aircraft used by the Kingdom of Atlas, found most often in their Argus operations. Description The Manta is a light transport-fighter aircraft, resembling a smaller, more streamlined combination of the Bullhead and the Atlesian Dropship, whilst carrying out similar functions. Along with being able to fly at both high speeds and long distances, the Manta is very durable, able to fly after taking severe damage. When seen from the above, the airship resembles a manta ray, with a protruding cockpit prior to a broad pair of wings that get thinner prior to the tail. It is a high wing vessel, with the wings above the fuselage, which is itself round and in an oval shape aside from the tail. The propellers are located at the tip of the wings. On both sides of the fuselage there are sliding doors with retracting ramps at the bottom. Four legs serve as its landing gear. The Manta are equipped with six missile batteries, each filled with fourteen missile pods, for a grand total of eighty-four missiles per craft, all located in two triangular housings surrounding the plane's nose. Inside the ship, there is the cockpit with a pilot and copilot seat as well as a passenger hold. In that compartment, there is a bench with three seat belts and three parachutes on the opposite wall, meaning the craft is built with plans to carry five people at most. History Manta airships are first seen in "Stealing from the Elderly" on an airfield adjacent to the Argus Military Base. Caroline Cordovin allows Weiss Schnee to fly home to Atlas in one. However, Weiss and Maria Calavera, who had stowed away in Weiss' baggage, plan to also take the rest of their group, and they throw the two guards set to pilot the Manta, callsign 5-1, out of the ship. The hijacking eventually leads to a battle between the Huntsmen and Cordovin, who operates a Colossus. The giant mech is stopped, but not before Cordovin electrocutes the Manta with a lightning Dust shot that forces Oscar Pine to perform a crash landing in a nearby forest. Afterwards, as seen in "Our Way", a swarm of Grimm along with a Leviathan approach Argus, and several Mantas take off from the base to fight the beasts. Maria suggests the party use the Grimm attack as cover to take the stolen airship to Atlas, but the others refuse. They proceed to fly to the Leviathan, where Ruby Rose manages to temporarily petrify it with her Silver Eyes before Cordovin returns and uses the Colossus' drill arm to kill the giant Grimm. Ruby thanks her and apologizes, and Cordovin allows her and her co-conspirators to leave, stating that her superiors will not notice one more missing aircraft in the eventual report to be written on the incident. The heroes fly the Manta to Atlas, where it is waved in. Neopolitan uses her Semblance to disguise a sailship as a Manta so that she and Cinder Fall could fly it to Atlas and throw off the authorities. References Category:Transportation